1 Samuele 22:15 Commento

David, being driven from Achish, returns into the land of Israel to be hunted by Saul. I. David sets up his standard in the cave of Adullam, entertains his relations (Sa1 22:1), enlists soldiers (Sa1 22:2), but removes his aged parents to a more quiet settlement (Sa1 22:3, Sa1 22:4), and has the prophet Gad for his counsellor (Sa1 22:5). Saul resolves to pursue him and find him out, complains of his servants and Jonathan (Sa1 22:6-8), and, finding by Doeg's information that Ahimelech had been kind to David, he ordered him and all the priests that were with him, eighty-five in all, to be put to death, and all that belonged to them destroyed (Sa1 22:9-19) from the barbarous execution of which sentence Abiathar escaped to David (Sa1 22:20-23).

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 22 This chapter gives us an account of the flight of David from place to place, from Gath to the cave of Adullam, where his relations came to him; from thence to Mizpeh in Moab, where he got leave of the king of Moab for his father and mother to dwell there; and from thence, by the advice of Gad the prophet, departed into the land of Judah, and came to the forest of Hareth, Sa1 21:1; and of the complaint of Saul to his servants of their unfaithfulness to him, and indolence and unconcern at the behaviour of Jonathan and David to him, Sa1 22:6; when Doeg the Edomite informed him of David being seen by him at Nob, and of his receiving food and a sword from Ahimelech the priest, who inquired of the Lord for him, Sa1 22:9; upon which Saul sent for Ahimelech and all the priests at Nob, and charged them with a conspiracy against him; and notwithstanding the defence the priest made, Saul ordered him and the rest of the priests to be slain by his guards; which they refusing, Doeg became the executioner of them, and of all the inhabitants of the city of Nob, and the cattle in it, Sa1 22:11; only Abiathar a son of Ahimelech escaped and fled to David with the sorrowful news; which greatly affected David, looking upon himself to be the occasion of this sad disaster, and he took Abiathar under his protection, and promised him safety, Sa1 22:20.

Did I then begin to inquire of God for him?.... Was this the first time of inquiring of God for him? no; I have done this many a time, when he has been going upon the king's business, engaging in war with his enemies; he has then consulted the Lord by me, and I have inquired of the Lord for him, as I now did; and which I did as innocently, and as much for the king's service, as ever I did any. Kimchi observes it may be read without the interrogation, "that day I began to inquire of God for him"; it was the first time I ever did, and I did not know it would have been grievous to thee, or have given thee any disturbance or uneasiness. I did not know that he fled from thee, or was not in thy service, and upon thy business; had I known it, I would never have done it, and as it is the first time it shall be the last: be it far from me; from doing such a thing, had I known it to be disagreeable to thee, or how David stood with thee: let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father; charge me or them with the crime of treason, or conspiracy against him, or with aiding:, assisting, and abetting traitors and conspirators: for thy servant knew nothing of all this, less or more; was entirely ignorant of this affair; which plain, honest, account of things, one might have thought, would have been satisfying to Saul; but it seems it was not by what follows.

For your servant did not know, etc. He responded to what he was accused of by Saul, having helped David, knowing that he was weaving deceit and traps for him, because he knew nothing of this business at that time. But Christian faith also denies knowing if the Lord Jesus ever corrupted legal statutes with any fraudulent traps: which is openly to confess that Jesus Christ is not a deceiver, greedy for the praise of others, but was learned to be the true messenger of the father’s will; who is therefore rightly called the Angel of Great Counsel by the prophet (Isa. IX). As is the saying of the apostle: I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest (Acts XXIII) for the reason that he would say: I knew that he is not the high priest, with the pontificate of him who is already appeared and glorified, who with his chosen sons is priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

David flees to the cave of Adullam, where he is joined by four hundred men of various descriptions, Sa1 22:1, Sa1 22:2. He goes afterwards to Moab; and by the advice of the prophet Gad, to the forest of Hareth, Sa1 22:3-5. Saul, suspecting his servants of infidelity, upbraids them, Sa1 22:6-8. Doeg informs him of David's coming to Nob; of his being entertained by Ahimelech; on which Saul slays Ahimelech and all the priests, to the number of eighty-five, and destroys the city of Nob, Sa1 22:9-19. Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, only escapes; he joins with David, by whom he is assured of protection, Sa1 22:20-23.

Did I then begin to inquire of God - He probably means that his inquiring now for David was no new thing, having often done so before, and without ever being informed it was either wrong in itself, or displeasing to the king. Nor is it likely that Ahimelech knew of any disagreement between Saul and David. He knew him to be the king's son-in-law, and he treated him as such.

DAVID'S KINDRED AND OTHERS RESORT TO HIM AT ADULLAM. (Sa1 22:1-8) David . . . escaped to the cave Adullam--supposed to be that now called Deir-Dubban, a number of pits or underground vaults, some nearly square, and all about fifteen or twenty feet deep, with perpendicular sides, in the soft limestone or chalky rocks. They are on the borders of the Philistine plain at the base of the Judea mountains, six miles southwest from Beth-lehem, and well adapted for concealing a number of refugees. his brethren and all his father's house . . . went down--to escape the effects of Saul's rage, which seems to have extended to all David's family. From Beth-lehem to Deir-Dubban it is, indeed, a descent all the way.